10 Predictions For WWE's Direction After SummerSlam 2016
1. Rollins & Balor: Destined To Do This Forever
Finn Balor’s ascent to the top of the Raw card has been as swift as it is surprising. His high Draft pick always suggested that Balor would quickly find himself in a position of prominence, but many assumed that this would be atop the midcard with the likes of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, not headlining one of the biggest PPVs of the year within a month of debuting.
But here we are. The former NXT Champion won the opportunity to face Seth Rollins for the Universal Championship by winning an exciting Fatal Four-Way and pinning Roman Reigns cleanly two weeks ago. On paper, it’s an incredibly exciting prospect between two of the company’s best workers, and if built as a long-term rivalry, Balor vs. Rollins can be a key money-maker for WWE for many months to come.
There’s already bad blood between the two stemming from their interactions on last week’s Raw. At this point, Rollins is clearly positioned as Raw’s top heel, and Balor has no immediate competition for the role of the show’s biggest babyface. Knowing this, there’s simply no need to end the feud with a “one and done” match at SummerSlam, and regardless of the outcome, we can expect these two to remain a thorn in each other’s side for the foreseeable future.
It Balor becomes Universal Champion, it makes perfect sense for the spoilt, entitled Rollins to throw his toys out of the pram and use his relationship with Stephanie McMahon to slip into a rematch. If Balor loses, meanwhile, he can be given a natural babyface “working from behind” build to contendership, before eventually pulling out his iconic Demon body paint and vanquishing The Architect in the final battle.
It wouldn’t just be a shame if WWE didn’t put the two in a long-term program: it’d be a gigantic missed opportunity.